As Clady goes on injured reserve, the Broncos replaced him on the roster with veteran Winston Justice, who played with the Indianapolis Colts last year. Chris Clark will get his first NFL start at left tackle Monday night against the Oakland Raiders. Clark did have six starts as a third tight end during the Broncos' run-heavy 2011 season.

Justice was a second-round pick out of USC by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2006 draft. He has 42 of his 43 NFL starts at right tackle.

The Broncos have scored 90 points in their 2-0 start to the 2013 season in large part because quarterback Peyton Manning has been prolific in the passing game with his large stable of receiving weapons.

But this is a blow to a team that has been listed as the consensus Super Bowl favorites.

Since Clady was the Broncos' No. 12 overall pick in the 2008 draft, he has earned three Pro Bowl berths and two all-pro selections. He had played in 85 consecutive games, including playoffs, until a little more than three minutes remaining in the Broncos' blowout win at MetLife Stadium when a Giants defender fell into the back of his left foot during a running play.

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The Broncos had shopped around Clady's initial medical findings to multiple doctors in recent days. But the only reason people seek second opinions is because they don't like the first analysis.

The Broncos were hoping Clady's injury would have had a three-month recovery, which would have meant putting him on IR with a designation to return. Although the IR designation would have allowed Clady to return in eight weeks, the Broncos never focused on him returning that fast.

There was some hope he could return in the final two games of the regular season or playoffs. However, the tear was such that all doctors concurred there was little other choice but season-ending surgery.

Broncos wide receivers Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker each had Lisfranc injuries going into the 2010 draft. The Broncos still took them in the first and third rounds, respectively. The tentative expected recovery time is six months, so Clady should be ready by the team's 2014 training camp.

It's now up to Clark. The Broncos recently secured the guy responsible for securing Manning's blind side by signing Clark to a two-year extension Monday that will pay him $2 million this year and $1.4 million each of the next two years.